Chinese Paddlefish
Conservation status
Critically endangered (IUCN)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Actinopterygii Order: Acipenseriformes Family: Polyodontidae Genus: Psephurus Species: P. gladius
Binomial name
Psephurus gladius (Martens, 1862)
Synonyms
Polyodon gladius Polyodon angustifolium Image File history File links Psephurus_gladius. ... The conservation status of a species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species continuing to survive either in the present day or the future. ... Image File history File links Status_iucn2. ... . ... The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List and Red Data List), created in 1963, is the worlds most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of plant and animal species and can be found here. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is a method by which biologists group and categorize species of organisms. ... For other uses, see Animal (disambiguation). ... Typical Classes Subphylum Urochordata - Tunicates Ascidiacea Thaliacea Larvacea Subphylum Cephalochordata - Lancelets Subphylum Myxini - Hagfishes Subphylum Vertebrata - Vertebrates Petromyzontida - Lampreys Placodermi (extinct) Chondrichthyes - Cartilaginous fishes Acanthodii (extinct) Actinopterygii - Ray-finned fishes Actinistia - Coelacanths Dipnoi - Lungfishes Amphibia - Amphibians Reptilia - Reptiles Aves - Birds Mammalia - Mammals Chordates (phylum Chordata) include the vertebrates, together with... Orders See text The Actinopterygii are the ray-finned fish. ... Families Acipenseridae (sturgeons) Polyodontidae (paddlefishes) Chondrosteidae extinct Errolichthyidae extinct Acipenseriformes is an order of primitive ray-finned fishes that includes the sturgeons and paddlefishes, as well as some extinct families. ... Species Polyodon spathula Psephurus gladius Paddlefishes (family Polyodontidae) are bizarre-looking primitive ray-finned fishes whose snouts are greatly elongated, about 1/2 the length of the rest of the body. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... 1862 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... In scientific nomenclature, synonyms are different scientific names used for a single taxon. ...

The Chinese Paddlefish (Simplified Chinese: 白鲟; Traditional Chinese: 白鱘; Pinyin: báixún), also known as Chinese Swordfish, is among the largest freshwater fish, and one of two extant paddlefish species. It is also called "elephant fish" (象魚; xiàngyú) because its snout resembles an elephant trunk. It is recorded sometimes in Classical Chinese as wěi-fish (鮪). More poetically, it is sometimes referred to as the "Giant Panda of the Rivers", not because of any physical resemblance to a panda, but because of its rarity and protected status. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Traditional Chinese characters refers to one of two standard sets of printed Chinese characters. ... Pinyin, more formally called Hanyu Pinyin (Simplified Chinese: ; Traditional Chinese: ; Pinyin: ), is the most common variant of Standard Mandarin romanization system in use. ... For the village on the Isle of Wight, see Freshwater, Isle of Wight. ... Fish are aquatic vertebrates that are cold-blooded, covered with scales, and equipped with two sets of paired fins and several unpaired fins. ... In biology, extant taxon is commonly used in discussions of living and fossil species. ... Species Genus Polyodon   Polyodon spathula Genus Psephurus   Psephurus gladius Paddlefish (family Polyodontidae) are primitive Chondrostian ray-finned fishes. ... Genera and Species Loxodonta Loxodonta cyclotis Loxodonta africana Elephas Elephas maximus Elephas antiquus † Elephas beyeri † Elephas celebensis † Elephas cypriotes † Elephas ekorensis † Elephas falconeri † Elephas iolensis † Elephas planifrons † Elephas platycephalus † Elephas recki † Stegodon † Mammuthus † Elephantidae (the elephants) is a family of pachyderm, and the only remaining family in the order Proboscidea... Classical Chinese or Literary Chinese is a traditional style of written Chinese based on the grammar and vocabulary of very old forms of Chinese , making it very different from any modern spoken form of Chinese. ... Panda Bear redirects here. ...

The Chinese Paddlefish is the People's Republic of China's first-level protected animal. Its belly is white and back and head grey. They live mostly in the middle or lower part of the Yangtze (Chang Jiang), occasionally in large lakes. They feed on other fish, with a small amount of crabs and crayfish. They are sexually mature at seven or eight, with a body length of 2 metres and a weight of 25 kilograms. The Yangtze River or Chang Jiang (Simplified Chinese: ; Traditional Chinese: ; Pinyin: ), or Drichu in Tibetan (Tibetan: འབ; Wylie: bri chu) is the longest river in Asia and the third longest in the world, after the Nile in Africa, and the Amazon in South America. ...

It is said that the zoologist Bǐng Zhì (秉志) recorded around the 1950s that some fishermen caught a paddlefish of 7-metres, although the authenticity of the story is unconfirmed.

Due to overfishing, the Chinese Paddlefish is endangered now, and officially recognized by the People's Republic in 1983 to prevent fishing of paddlefish young or adults. Paddlefish are also threatened by dams (like the Three Gorges Dam), which divide the population into isolated groups. The fish are rarely seen, recently raising concerns that the species might already be extinct. However, a 3.6-meter, 250 kilogram specimen was killed by illegal fishing on January 8, 2007, in Jiayu County on the Yangtze River. An endangered species is a species whose population is so small that it is in danger of becoming extinct. ... Year 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar). ... Relative position of the Three Gorges Dam . ... January 8 is the 8th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... The Yangtze River or Chang Jiang (Simplified Chinese: ; Traditional Chinese: ; Pinyin: ), or Drichu in Tibetan (Tibetan: འབ; Wylie: bri chu) is the longest river in Asia and the third longest in the world, after the Nile in Africa, and the Amazon in South America. ...

They were once given the scientific names of Polyodon gladius and Polyodon angustifolium. In biology, binomial nomenclature is a standard convention used for naming species. ...

References

• Sturgeon Specialist Group (1996). Psephurus gladius. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Listed as Critically Endangered (CR A2cd v2.3)

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List and Red Data List), created in 1963, is the worlds most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of plant and animal species and can be found here. ... The World Conservation Union or International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) is an international organization dedicated to natural resource conservation. ...

External links

• "Psephurus gladius". FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. October 2005 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2005.
• 150-kilogram female caught and released: Yibin, China
• Chinese Paddlefish Dies in Illegal Fishing (with image). Xinhua News Service, January 12, 2007. Accessed on July 12, 2007.